Daniella Karagach and Pasha Pashkov of Dancing With The Stars (DWTS) revealed they were expecting their first child in May 2023. The pair, who married in July 2014, began dancing together in 2009 after being introduced by mutual teachers. Daniella and Pasha confirmed their pregnancy to PEOPLE in a joint statement. According to the former, her DWTS season 31 dance partner Joseph Baena was uninformed of the news and that “he’s a darling, and he really was really kind with me, although he didn’t know.”
Daniella said in an interview with the publication:
“We’ve wanted to start a family since we were married, and we’ve been married for eight and a half years, so we’re more than ready. We wanted to start preparing this year, and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. I found out I was pregnant on the first day of [DWTS season 31].”
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Daniella Karagach and Pasha Pashkov of DWTS have won various international events together.
When their respective coaches introduced them, Daniella and Pasha had an immediate connection. Pasha required a new colleague in early 2009, and once she became his dancing partner, the two had a strong connection that blossomed into a genuine relationship.
Pasha recalls meeting his dancing partner and the love of his life in a 2017 interview with Dance Info. He stated:
“My old partner left to go on Dancing with the Stars, therefore I needed a new partner.” My Standard instructor suggested that I attempt to dance with Daniella. I wasn’t sure since we were six and a half years apart in age.”
However, the Russian native added that regardless of the age gap, his instructor indicated that it wouldn’t matter, and therefore he enlisted Daniella to dance with him. After a practice session, the duo quickly bonded and sensed there was something special between them. Daniella began dating Pasha a year ago after they spent time together during their dancing training. After four years of dating, the latter proposed on January 1, 2012, and they married two years later.
The former dance partners won various international contests and advanced to the World of Dance season 2 qualifiers in 2018 before joining the cast of Dancing With The Stars (DWTS) the following year. While Pasha was teaching Kate Flannery, Daniella danced with the ensemble and met her partner on season 3 of the dance competition in Nelly.
In July 2022, Daniella and Pasha celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary and debuted as professional dancers on season 31 of DWTS. The Mirror Ball trophy was also won by the New York native the previous season, together with NBA shooting guard Iman Shumpert. Daniella teamed with Joseph Baena on season 31 of DWTS, which started in September 2022, and they were the sixth couple to be eliminated from the program. Pasha was eliminated second after being paired with reality TV personality Teresa Giudice.
Daniella revealed on Instagram in November 2022 that she was expecting her first child with Pasha. She captioned a snapshot of the pair cuddling up with her while clutching baby shoes:
“Baby Pashkov, we love you more than words could possibly convey.”
Daniella claimed to PEOPLE that she had “no nausea from day one,” despite the fact that her body was so accustomed to dancing. During her first trimester, though, she became more conscious of her pregnancy. She stated:
“My body is so accustomed to dancing and being active that going the opposite way is too much of an extreme for it. “The fact that you keep dancing is really beneficial for the baby,” my doctor said. That was encouraging to hear.”
Before Daniella and Pasha announced the coming of a new member, Witney Carson, another pro dancer, confirmed her pregnancy on the program earlier this month. Jenna Johnson, Val Chmerkovskiy’s wife, did not participate in season 31 since she was pregnant. Daniella added that she would seek guidance and support from her DWTS family since many of them had gone through similar experiences.
